Fuel Injection Device for Engines

ABSTRACT

A technology that can extend the life of a fuel injection device of an engine while maintaining its good responsiveness is provided. A fuel injection device 100 for an engine includes: a control rack 55 supported to be slidable in an axial direction and capable of adjusting of a fuel pressure-feed amount of a fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit 51, based on its slide-position relative to the axial direction; an actuator 40 capable of reciprocating its operating unit 41; and a link lever 20 swingably supported by a pivot shaft member 25 and configured to swing in association with reciprocation of the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 thereby causing the control rack 55 to slide, wherein the fuel injection device includes an actuator-side connecting part 20A connecting an operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 to the link lever 20, and the actuator-side connecting part 20A is positioned on the same axis as the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a fuel injection device of an engine,including: a control rack supported slidably in an axial direction andcapable of adjusting a fuel pressure-feed amount of a fuel pressure-feedmechanism unit, based on its slide-position relative to the axialdirection; an actuator capable of reciprocating its operating unit alongan operating shaft; and a link lever swingably supported by a pivotshaft member and configured to swing in association with reciprocationof the operating unit of the actuator thereby causing the control rackto slide.

BACKGROUND ART

A diesel engine and the like having a mechanical fuel injection pumpinclude a fuel injection device for controlling a fuel pressure-feedamount of a fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit according to controls of aload and a rotation number of the engine (see, for example, PatentLiterature 1; hereinafter, PTL 1).

In the fuel injection device of such an engine, reciprocation of anoperating unit of an actuator causes a link lever to swing inconjunction with the reciprocation of the operating unit. Further, inconjunction with the swing of the link lever, a control rack slides inan axial direction of the operating unit. By controlling the actuatorbased on a control signal from an engine control unit, a slide-positionof the control rack relative to the axial direction can be adjusted toset the fuel pressure-feed amount of the fuel pressure-feed mechanismunit to a suitable amount.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

PTL 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-297918

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

In a traditional fuel injection device as described above, an actuatoris typically arranged nearby a center portion of the device main body.However, since the control rack is arranged on a lateral side of thefuel pressure-feed mechanism unit, the control rack and the link leverare arranged laterally offset from the position nearby the centerportion.

Therefore, a point of action where a load from the link lever acts on anoperating shaft of the actuator is in a position laterally deviated withrespect to the operating shaft of the actuator. In such a structure, arelatively large bending moment is applied to the operating shaft, whilethe operating unit of the actuator is reciprocated along the operatingshaft. This causes excessive progress in the abrasion of a slidingmember such as the operating shaft and the like of the actuator, whichleads to a concern for deteriorated responsiveness, damages, and thelike.

In view of the above circumstances, a primary object of the presentinvention is to provide a technology that can extend the life of a fuelinjection device of an engine while maintaining its good responsiveness.

Solution to Problem

A first feature configuration of the present invention is a fuelinjection device of an engine including: a control rack supported to beslidable in an axial direction and capable of adjusting a fuelpressure-feed amount of a fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit based on itsslide-position relative to the axial direction;

an actuator capable of reciprocating its operating unit along anoperating shaft; and

a link lever swingably supported by a pivot shaft member and configuredto swing in association with reciprocation of the operating unit of theactuator thereby causing the control rack to slide, wherein

the fuel injection device includes an actuator-side connecting partconnecting the operating unit of the actuator to the link lever, and

the actuator-side connecting part is positioned on the operating shaftof the actuator.

In this configuration, when the operating unit of the actuatorreciprocates along its operating shaft thus swinging the link lever, aload from the link lever acts in a direction of the operating shaft onthe operating shaft of the actuator at the actuator-side connectingpart. This way, a bending moment applied to the operating unit of theactuator can be reduced, and excessive progress in the abrasion of thesliding member of the actuator can be suppressed or reduced.

Thus, the present invention can achieve a fuel injection device of anengine that can extend the life while maintaining good responsiveness.

A second feature configuration of the present invention may include abiasing member configured to bias the link lever in one of swingingdirections of the link lever, wherein

a position where the biasing member is connected to the link lever and acenter of the operating unit of the actuator are on a same planeperpendicularly crossing the axis of a swing shaft of the link lever.

This configuration including the biasing member configured to bias thelink lever to one of the swing directions can suppress and reducerattling of the link lever and achieve smooth sliding of the controlrack. Further, in this configuration with such a biasing member, aposition where the biasing member is connected to the link lever and thecenter of the operating unit of the actuator are on a same planeperpendicularly crossing the axis of the swing shaft of the link lever.Therefore, even when a biasing force from the biasing member is appliedto the link lever, the biasing force is not transmitted as a bendingmoment, but as a load in the direction corresponding to the operatingshaft, to the operating shaft of the actuator. Therefore, progress inthe abrasion attributed to the bending moment on the sliding member ofthe actuator can be suppressed or reduced.

It should be noted that an end of the biasing member opposite to theconnection part on the link lever may be fixed to a suitable position.For example, by connecting the opposite end of the biasing member to themain body side of the actuator, a bending moment applied to theoperating shaft of the actuator can be further reduced.

A third feature configuration of the present invention is such that thelink lever has, on two sides of the operating unit of the actuatorsandwiching therebetween the operating unit, a pair of lever memberspivotally supported by the pivot shaft member in such a manner as tointegrally swing, and that the actuator-side connecting part connectsboth of the lever members to the operating unit of the actuator.

In this configuration, the link lever has the pair of lever members thatintegrally swing, and the actuator-side connecting part is configured byconnecting the pair of lever members to the operating unit of theactuator from both sides of the operating unit in such a manner as tosandwich therebetween the operating unit. This way, to the operatingshaft of the actuator, a load is applied in the direction of theoperating shaft, substantially evenly from both sides. As a result, theconfiguration can cause a load from the link lever to act along theoperating shaft on the operating shaft of the actuator at theactuator-side connecting part.

A fourth feature configuration of the present invention is such that theactuator-side connecting part is configured with a penetration pinbridged between the pair of lever members penetrating the operating unitof the actuator.

In this configuration, the actuator-side connecting part with the pairof lever members connected to the operating unit of the actuator isconfigured by adopting a reasonable configuration in which both endsides of the penetration pin penetrating the operating unit of theactuator are fixed to the pair of lever members arranged on the twosides of the operating unit sandwiching therebetween the operating unit,respectively. This configuration can achieve a reduction of a bendingmoment applied to the operating shaft of the actuator.

A fifth feature configuration of the present invention is such that aside wall portion of a housing unit accommodating the operating unit ofthe actuator has an insertion port through which the penetration pin isinserted into the actuator-side connecting part.

In an assembling work for such an actuator-side connecting part in whichthe penetration pin bridged between the pair of lever members penetratesthe operating unit of the actuator, the side wall portion of the housingunit on a lateral side of the pair of lever members may be an obstaclefor inserting the penetration pin from the lateral side.

With this configuration, however, the insertion port is formed on theside wall portion of the housing unit. Therefore, the penetration pincan be inserted from the lateral side of the pair of lever membersthrough the insertion port. This configuration can downsize the deviceby narrowing the space between the side wall portion of the housing unitand the pair of lever members as much as possible, while achievingeasier assembling work.

A sixth feature configuration of the present invention is such that thepenetration pin is configured to be separable into a plurality of piecesin its axial direction.

In this configuration, the penetration pin is separable into a pluralityof pieces in its axial direction. Therefore, in the assembling work ofthe actuator-side connecting part, even if there is not a sufficientspace for inserting the penetration pin from the lateral side of thepair of lever members, the penetration pin can be separated into piecesand these separated pieces of the penetration pin can be inserted fromthe lateral sides of the pair of lever members. This configuration candownsize the device by narrowing the space between the side wall portionof the housing unit and the pair of lever members as much as possible,while achieving easier assembling work.

A seventh feature configuration of the present invention is such thatthe operating unit of the actuator has a bearing member into which thepenetration pin is inserted, and

the bearing member is not movable with respect to the operating unit inreciprocating directions of the operating unit but is slidable relativeto the operating unit in a swing axis traverse direction, the swing axistraverse direction being perpendicular to the axis of the pivot shaftmember and passing through the actuator-side connecting part and therack-side connecting part.

In this configuration, the penetration pin is journaled by the bearingmember provided to the operating unit of the actuator. Therefore, theoperating unit of the actuator and the penetration pin can be connectedby surface contact through the bearing member, while avoidingline-contact which progresses abrasion. Further, the penetration pin canbe supported to be slidable in the swing axis traverse direction, whilerattling in the reciprocating directions of the operating unit issuppressed or reduced. This way, reciprocation of the operating unit canbe suitably transmitted to the link lever through the penetration pin.

An eighth feature configuration of the present invention is such thatthe operating unit of the actuator is separable into front and rearpieces along the reciprocating directions of the operating unit so as toallow insertion of the penetration pin into a pin through hole from aradial direction of the pin through hole, the pin through hole being ahole in which the penetration pin penetrates.

In this configuration, the penetration pin can be inserted into the pinthrough hole from a radial direction of the pin through hole while theoperating unit is separated, and the operating unit can be assembledthereafter. This way, a space for inserting the penetration pin from thelateral side is not necessary, and the device can be further downsized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 A side view showing a configuration of a fuel injection device ofan engine.

FIG. 2 A front view of a housing unit in which an operating unit of anactuator is accommodated.

FIG. 3 A perspective view of the housing unit in which the operatingunit of the actuator is accommodated.

FIG. 4 An enlarged view of an actuator-side connecting part.

FIG. 5 An enlarged view of the actuator-side connecting part of anotherembodiment.

FIG. 6 A diagram explaining a configuration of a penetration pin inanother embodiment.

FIG. 7 A perspective view of a housing unit in which the operating unitof the actuator in another embodiment is accommodated.

FIG. 8 A perspective view showing a configuration of a fuel injectiondevice in another embodiment.

FIG. 9 An enlarged view of a rack-side connecting part in anotherembodiment.

FIG. 10 An enlarged view of a rack-side connecting part in anotherembodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention based onthe attached drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, a fuel injection device 100 of the presentembodiment is configured to control a fuel injection amount in a dieselengine. The fuel injection device 100 includes a governor 10 having anactuator 40 whose operation is controlled based on controls of a load orrotation number of the engine, and a fuel pump 50 having a fuelpressure-feed mechanism unit 51.

The fuel pump 50 includes a plurality of fuel pressure-feed mechanismunits 51 which are arranged side-by-side, and which are configured tointermittently pressure-feed liquid fuel to nozzles of cylinders of thediesel engine and causes the nozzles to inject the liquid fuel. On alateral-side (the rear side in FIG. 1) of the plurality of fuelpressure-feed mechanism units 51, there is a control rack 55 configuredto adjust a fuel pressure-feed amount of the fuel pressure-feedmechanism units 51 to the corresponding nozzles of the cylinders. Thecontrol rack 55 is supported in a slidable manner along its axis, in aposture that traverses a lateral side of the plungers 52 of theplurality of fuel pressure-feed mechanism units 51.

Further, on the plunger 52 side of the fuel pressure-feed mechanismunits 51 (lower side in FIG. 1), a camshaft 57 having cams 57 a formoving plungers 52 up and down are journaled. With this camshaft 57driven and rotated, the cams 57 a arranged on the camshaft 57 pumps(moves up and down) the plungers 52 of the fuel pressure-feed mechanismunits 51, respectively. The pumping of these plungers 52 can compressthe liquid fuel in the fuel pressure-feed mechanism units 51.

Further, the fuel pressure-feed mechanism units 51 are each configuredin such a manner that the fuel pressure-feed amount can be adjusted inassociation with a change in the position of a fuel supply port, bychanging a slide-position of the control rack 55 relative to the axialdirection.

In the present embodiment, a direction (the rightward direction inFIG. 1) in which the control rack 55 slides from the governor 10 sidetoward the fuel pump 50 side in the axial direction is referred to as“push direction”. On the contrary, a direction (the leftward directionin FIG. 1) in which the control rack 55 slides from the fuel pump 50side toward the governor 10 side in the axial direction is referred toas “pull direction”.

The fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit 51 is structured so that, forexample, the fuel pressure-feed amount is reduced when the control rack55 slides in the push direction, and that the fuel pressure-feed amountincreases when the control rack 55 slides in the pull direction. One endside of the control rack 55 has a connection end portion 55 a which isconnected to the link lever 20 in the housing unit 10A of thelater-described governor 10. Further, the fuel pump 50 is provided withan auxiliary spring 56 and the like that assists the control rack 55 toslide in the pull direction.

The governor 10 is connected to a side of the fuel pump 50, on whichside the connection end portion 55 a of the control rack 55 is arranged.As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the governor 10 has a housing unit 10Athat faces the fuel pump 50.

On a side of the governor 10 opposite to the fuel pump 50, anelectrically operated actuator 40 is attached. This actuator 40 includesan operating unit 41 arranged in the housing unit 10A of the governor10, and is configured to reciprocate this operating unit 41 along anoperating shaft 45 substantially parallel to the direction in which thecontrol rack 55 slides.

A link lever 20 is provided in the housing unit 10A of the governor 10.The link lever 20 is swingably supported by a pivot shaft member 25whose axis is perpendicular and skew to the sliding direction of thecontrol rack 55. This swingably supported link lever 20 has anactuator-side connecting part 20A connected to the operating unit 41 ofthe actuator 40, and a rack-side connecting part 20B connected to theconnection end portion 55 a of the control rack 55. These connectingparts 20A and 20B are provided side-by-side along a directionsubstantially perpendicular to the axis of the pivot shaft member 25.The actuator-side connecting part 20A is between the pivot shaft member25 and the rack-side connecting part 20B.

In the link lever 20, a direction corresponding to the axis of the pivotshaft member 25 is referred to as “swing axial direction”, a directionperpendicular to the axis of the pivot shaft member 25 and passingthrough the actuator-side connecting part 20A and the rack-sideconnecting part 20B is referred to as “swing axis traverse direction”.

To a predetermined portion of the link lever 20, one end of a spring 30(an exemplary biasing member) is connected. The other end of the spring30 is connected to a connecting tool 31 (see FIG. 3) fixed on the bottomportion side of the housing unit 10A of the governor 10. In other words,the spring 30 applies, to the link lever 20, a biasing force in adirection toward one of the swinging directions of the link lever 20,thereby suppressing and reducing rattling of the link lever 20. Theconnecting tool 31 connecting the spring 30 to the bottom portion sideof the housing unit 10A can be fixed to a suitable position of thegovernor 10. For example, this connecting tool 31 can be fixed to a mainbody side of the actuator 40. This way, a bending moment applied to theoperating shaft 45 of the actuator 40 can be further reduced.

In the fuel injection device 100, when the actuator 40 reciprocates theoperating unit 41 along its operating shaft 45, the link lever 20 swingsabout the pivot shaft member 25. With the swing of the link lever 20,the control rack 55 connected to the link lever 20 slides in the pushdirection or the pull direction. That is, by controlling the actuator 40based on a control signal from an engine control unit (not shown), theslide-position of the control rack 55 relative to the axial direction isadjusted. In association with this adjustment, the fuel pressure-feedamount of the fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit 51 can be suitably set.

The fuel injection device 100 of the present embodiment has a featureconfiguration for achieving a long life while maintaining goodresponsiveness. This is further detailed hereinbelow.

The actuator-side connecting part 20A connecting the operating unit 41of the actuator 40 to the link lever 20 is arranged on the axis of theoperating shaft 45 of the actuator 40.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the link lever 20 has a pair of levermembers 21 which are pivotally supported by the pivot shaft member 25 insuch a manner as to integrally swing. The link members 21 are arrangedon two sides of the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 sandwichingtherebetween the operating unit 41. With a penetration pin 32 bridgedbetween the pair of lever members 21 penetrating the operating unit 41of the actuator 40, the actuator-side connecting part 20A connects bothof the lever members 21 to the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40.

As to the rack-side connecting part 20B, on the other hand, one of thelever members 21 is extended to from the side opposite to the pivotshaft member 25, and this extended part 21 a is connected to theconnection end portion 55 a of the control rack 55 via an arm 27. Itshould be noted that, in the present embodiment, the rack-sideconnecting part 20B is provided to one of the lever members 21. However,both of the lever members 21 may be extended to the side opposite to thepivot shaft member 25, and the connection end portion 55 a of thecontrol rack 55 may be connected to a pin bridged between both extendedparts.

The link lever 20 having the pair of lever members 21 is configured bybending two sides of a plate member in the same direction to form aU-shaped cross-section, and the portions bent are used as the pair oflever members 21. That is, the pair of lever members 21 of the linklever 20 are formed as a plate-like member parallel to each other andarranged on both sides of the operating unit 41, with their thicknessdirections corresponding to the swing axial direction. Further, the pairof lever members 21 are connected to each other via a pair of couplingportions 22 and 23 on both the pivot shaft member 25 side and therack-side connecting part 20B side.

In the link lever 20 configured as described above, the in-planedirections of the lever members 21 are oriented along the direction ofload applied to the pivot shaft member 25, the actuator-side connectingpart 20A, and the rack-side connecting part 20B. This improves therigidity of the link lever 20 with respect to the load. The number ofcoupling portions 22 and 23 connecting the pair of lever members 21 maybe suitably modified in consideration of the rigidity of the levermembers 21 and the like.

As described hereinabove, the fuel injection device 100 reciprocates theoperating unit 41 of the actuator 40 along the operating shaft 45 toswing the link lever 20. To swing the link lever 20, a load is appliedin a reciprocating direction to the operating unit 41 of the actuator40, substantially evenly from both sides of the operating unit 41,through the penetration pin 32. That is, at the actuator-side connectingpart 20A, a load from the link lever 20 acts on the operating shaft 45of the actuator 40 along the operating shaft 45. This way, a bendingmoment applied to the operating shaft 45 of the actuator 40 is reduced,and excessive progress in the abrasion of the sliding member of theactuator 40 can be suppressed or reduced. Therefore, the life of theactuator 40 can be extended by suppressing or reducing damages and thelike attributed to abrasion, while good responsiveness of the actuator40 is maintained.

Further, a portion of the link lever 20 connecting to the spring 30 forsuppressing or reducing rattling of the link lever 20 deviates from theaxis of the operating shaft 45 of the actuator 40 in the swing axistraverse direction. Specifically, the spring 30 is connected to the linklever 20 at a coupling portion 22, out of the pair of coupling portions22 and 23 connecting the pair of lever members 21, on the rack-sideconnecting part 20B side. Further, the portion connecting the spring 30to the link lever 20 and the center of the operating unit 41 of theactuator 40 are arranged on the same plane F (see FIG. 2)perpendicularly crossing the swing axis of the link lever 20.

That is, the biasing force applied from the spring 30 to the link lever20 is suitably transmitted to the operating shaft 45 of the actuator 40as a load in the direction of the axis of the operating shaft 45,without generating a bending moment that causes progress of abrasion. Itshould be noted that the portion of the link lever 20 connecting to thespring 30 can be suitably changed. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, thespring 30 can be connected to the rack-side connecting part 20B.Further, the spring 30 may be omitted as needed provided that, forexample, the rattling of the link lever 20 is not a problem, or that therattling can be suppressed or reduced by different means.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, an insertion port 12 is formed in a sidewall portion 11 of the housing unit 10A accommodating the operating unit41 of the actuator 40. The insertion port 12 is formed along the axialdirection of the penetration pin 32 of the actuator-side connecting part20A. This insertion port 12 is formed so the penetration pin 32 can beinserted into the actuator-side connecting part 20A. With this insertionport 12, the penetration pin 32 can be easily inserted from a lateralside of the pair of lever members 21 through the insertion port 12during assembling work of the actuator-side connecting part 20A, even ifthe space between the side wall portion 11 of the housing unit 10A andthe pair of lever members 21 is narrow. Then, after the assembling work,the insertion port 12 can be closed by a plug 15 and the like.

It should be noted that the insertion port 12 can be omitted, if thepenetration pin 32 can be inserted into the operating unit 41 withoutusing the insertion port 12, in the assembling work.

As shown in FIG. 4, at the actuator-side connecting part 20A of the linklever 20, a pin through hole 41 a is formed in the operating unit 41 ofthe actuator 40. The pin through hole 41 a is long in the swing axistraverse direction and parallel to the swing axial direction. This pinthrough hole 41 a has a bearing member 42 that cannot move relative tothe operating unit 41, in the reciprocating directions of the operatingunit 41, but can slide relative to the operating unit 41 in the swingaxis traverse direction in which the pin through hole 41 a is elongated.Through a hole formed in this bearing member 42, the penetration pin 32supported by the lever members 21 is inserted.

That is, the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 and the penetrationpin 32 can be connected by surface contact through the bearing member42, while avoiding line-contact which progresses abrasion. Since thepenetration pin 32 is journaled by the bearing member 42 which can slidein the swing axis traverse direction, the penetration pin 32 issupported in such a manner as to be slidable in the swing axis traversedirection, while rattling in the reciprocating directions of theoperating unit 41 is suppressed or reduced. Therefore, reciprocation ofthe operating unit 41 can be suitably transmitted to the link lever 20through the penetration pin 32. It should be noted that modification ofthe shape, configuration, and the like may be modified. For example, thebearing member 42 may be omitted, and the penetration pin 32 may bedirectly inserted into the pin through hole 41 a.

It should be noted that, the present embodiment deals with a case wherethe operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 is configured in one piece;however, for example, the operating unit 41 can be configured to beseparable into front and rear pieces relative to the reciprocatingdirections, as shown in FIG. 5. That is, in this configuration, theoperating unit 41 is configured as a member that is separable, at thecenter portion of the pin through hole 41 a, into a distal end member41A on the distal end side and a proximal end member 42B on the proximalend side. The distal end member 41A and the proximal end member 42B canbe combined into one piece by joining them with a plurality of screws41C. With this, the bearing member 42 with the penetration pin 32inserted therethrough can be inserted to the pin through hole 41 a in aradial direction, while the operating unit 41 is separated. Byassembling the operating unit 41 thereafter, there is no need for aspace for inserting the penetration pin 32 from a lateral side.

Although the penetration pin 32 to be inserted into the operating unit41 of the actuator 40 can be structured in one piece, the penetrationpin 32 may also be separable into a plurality of pieces in its axialdirection, as shown in FIG. 6. That is, the penetration pin 32 isseparable into two pin members 33. Each of the separable pin members 33is configured in a T-shape, which includes a head 33 a to abut theexterior side of the lever member 21 and a shaft 33 b extending from thehead 33 a. These two pin members 33 are connectable to each other bythreaded portions 33 c formed at the distal ends of the shafts 33 b.Such a penetration pin 32 can connect the lever members 21 to theoperating unit 41, even if a sufficient space for inserting thepenetration pin 32 is not available on the lateral sides of the pair ofthe lever members 21. To connect the lever members 21 to the operatingunit 41 in this case, the two pin members 33 are inserted from theexterior sides of the pair of lever members 21 into the operating unit41 in the interior side (see FIG. 6(a)), and then screw-fastening thethreaded portions 33 c at the distal end portions of the shafts 33 b(see FIG. 6(b)).

Other Embodiments

The following describes other embodiments of the present invention. Theconfigurations of the embodiments described hereinbelow are not limitedto being applied individually, but may be applied in combination withthe configurations of other embodiments.

(1) The following describes, with reference to FIG. 8, a difference inthe link lever 20, and the actuator-side connecting part 20A and therack-side connecting part 20B of the link lever 20 of another embodimentover the above described embodiment. However, descriptions are omittedas to the configurations similar to that of the above embodiments.

A link lever 20 shown in FIG. 8 is configured by bending two sides of aplate member in the same direction to form a U-shaped cross-section, andthe portions bent are used as a pair of lever members 21, as in theabove-described embodiment. Then, the pair of lever members 21 areconnected only through a coupling portion 23 on the pivot shaft member25 side, and are capable of integrally swinging.

Further, a rack-side connecting part 20B to be connected to the controlrack 55 via an arm 27 is provided on the distal end portion on one ofthe lever members 21. To this rack-side connecting part 20B, a spring 30for suppressing and reducing rattling of the link lever 20 is connected.

An operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 shown in FIG. 8 has adisc-shaped base plate member 43, and a pair of protruding part 44protruding toward the pair of lever members 21 at a further distal endside of the base plate member 43.

The pair of lever members 21 has therebetween a U-shaped receivingmember 37 including a pair of side parts 37A extended along the interiorside of the lever members 21 and a connection part 37B connecting theproximal end sides of the side parts 37A. This receiving member 37 isrotatably attached via shaft parts 37C arranged on the distal end sidesof the side parts 37A.

With this configuration, in the assembling work to attach the link lever20, the side parts 37A of the receiving member 37 can be easilyinserted, while rotating the receiving member 37 about the shaft parts37C, between the base plate member 43 and protruding parts 44 of theoperating unit 41 of the actuator 40. Further, by assembling the linklever 20 in this manner, reciprocation of the operating unit 41 can besuitably transmitted to the link lever 20 via the receiving member 37.

The assembling work of the link lever 20 becomes further easier, bymaking the protruding parts 44 of the operating unit 41 rotatable aboutthe center shaft of the operating unit 41 or interposing a spring andthe like and making the protruding parts 44 detachable from the baseplate member 43.

(2) The following describes, with reference to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, adifference in the rack-side connecting part 20B of another embodimentover the above described embodiment. However, descriptions are omittedas to the configurations similar to that of the above embodiments.

At the rack-side connecting part 20B shown in FIG. 9, a penetration pin35 bridged between a pair of lever members 21 is provided. To a centerportion of this penetration pin 35, a spring 30 for suppressing andreducing rattling of the link lever 20 is connected. Further, to an endportion of the penetration pin 35, an arm 27 to be connected to thecontrol rack 55 is connected. With this, the rigidity of the link lever20 is further improved, and the pair of link lever members 21 moreintegrally swing at the rack-side connecting part 20B. Further, theposition where the spring 30 is connected to the link lever 20 deviatesfrom the center of the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40 relative tothe swing axis traverse direction, and the position where the spring 30is connected and the center of the operating unit 41 of the actuator 40are on the same plane F which perpendicularly crosses the swing axis ofthe link lever 20. This way, a bending moment applied to the operatingshaft of the actuator 40 can be reduced.

Further, in the configuration shown in FIG. 9, an end portion of thepenetration pin 35 is connected to the control rack 55 side. Therefore,when the link lever 20 swings, the penetration pin 35 slightly rotatesand swings, causing friction between the penetration pin 35 and theconnecting part of the spring 30.

In view of this, the spring 30 is not directly connected to thepenetration pin 35, so that the friction can be reduced.

For example, in a rack-side connecting part 20B shown in FIG. 10, acylindrical member 36 is provided between the pair of lever members 21,and the penetration pin 35 is inserted through the cylindrical member36. The spring 30 is connected to a center portion of the cylindricalmember 36, and the arm 27 to which the control rack 55 is connected isconnected to an end portion of the penetration pin 35. With thisconfiguration, friction between the spring 30 and the cylindrical member36 can be avoided even when the penetration pin 35 rotates and swings.

(3) Of the planes perpendicularly crossing the pivot shaft member 25 inthe link lever 20 of the above embodiment shown in FIG. 2, a planepassing through the rack-side connecting part 20B is laterally offsetfrom a plane passing through the center of the actuator-side connectingpart 20A.

However, to make these planes be on the same plane, for example, theaxial direction of the pivot shaft member 25 may be rotated and tilted.By doing so, the force acting on the rack-side connecting part 20B canbe suitably transmitted to the operating shaft 45 of the actuator 40 asa load in the direction of the operating shaft 45, without generating abending moment that causes progress of abrasion.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention can be applied to fuel injection devices ofengines.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   -   10A housing unit    -   11 side wall portion    -   12 insertion port    -   20 link lever    -   20A actuator-side connecting part    -   20B rack-side connecting part    -   21 lever member    -   25 pivot shaft member    -   30 spring (biasing member)    -   32 penetration pin    -   40 actuator    -   41 operating unit    -   41 a pin through hole    -   42 bearing member    -   45 operating shaft    -   51 fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit    -   55 control rack    -   100 fuel injection device    -   F plane

1: A fuel injection device of an engine comprising: a control racksupported to be slidable in an axial direction and capable of adjustinga fuel pressure-feed amount of a fuel pressure-feed mechanism unit basedon its slide-position relative to the axial direction; an actuatorcapable of reciprocating its operating unit along an operating shaft;and a link lever swingably supported by a pivot shaft member andconfigured to swing in association with reciprocation of the operatingunit of the actuator thereby causing the control rack to slide, whereinthe fuel injection device includes an actuator-side connecting partconnecting the operating unit of the actuator to the link lever, theactuator-side connecting part is positioned on the operating shaft ofthe actuator; and a rack-side connecting part connecting the controlrack to the link lever, wherein the link lever has, on two sides of theoperating unit of the actuator sandwiching therebetween the operatingunit, a pair of lever members pivotally supported by the pivot shaftmember in such a manner as to integrally swing, the actuator-sideconnecting part is configured with a penetration pin bridged between thepair of lever members penetrating the operating unit of the actuator,both of the lever members being connected to the operating unit of theactuator, and the rack-side connecting part is configured so that anextended part formed by extending one of the lever members to a sideopposite to the pivot shaft member with respect to a longitudinaldirection of the lever member is connected to the control rack via anarm. 2: The fuel injection device of an engine according to claim 1,further comprising a biasing member configured to bias the link lever inone of swinging directions of the link lever, wherein the biasing memberis connected to the rack-side connecting part.
 3. (canceled) 4.(canceled) 5: The fuel injection device of an engine according to claim4, wherein a side wall portion of a housing unit accommodating theoperating unit of the actuator has an insertion port through which thepenetration pin is inserted into the actuator-side connecting part. 6:The fuel injection device of an engine according to claim 1, wherein thepenetration pin is configured to be separable into a plurality of piecesin its axial direction. 7: The fuel injection device of an engineaccording to claim 1, wherein: the operating unit of the actuator has abearing member into which the penetration pin is inserted, and thebearing member is not movable with respect to the operating unit inreciprocating directions of the operating unit but is slidable relativeto the operating unit in a swing axis traverse direction, the swing axistraverse direction being perpendicular to the axis of the pivot shaftmember and passing through the actuator-side connecting part and arack-side connecting part. 8: The fuel injection device of an engineaccording to claim 1, wherein the operating unit of the actuator isseparable into front and rear pieces along the reciprocating directionsof the operating unit so as to allow insertion of the penetration pininto a pin through hole from a radial direction of the pin through hole,the pin through hole being a hole in which the penetration pinpenetrates.